Nationwide 21 permit hearing

[dirtbag43]

Wow, tree-hugging thugs, that's a new one to me.

Bottom line is that with the new blast and doze method of mining it takes less miners than ever to extract coal from a mountain. Less workers + infinitely more destruction = bad idea. There needs to be a change. Besides, all these communities that supposedly thrive on the coal-mining industry are among the poorest counties and communities in the nation. Big Coal doesn't care about them! We deserve better!

[SuperCurdog]

jndmdd is making all coal miners look bad-- you are violent. Clean water and human decency trumps jobs that blast and poison people. These are no acceptable jobs. These are short term destructive jobs that blast and poison people -- yes-- you do hurt people, including your kids. Your paycheck has blood on it . Get another job - stop poisoning people for money you coal thugs.

[jndmdd]

I am done with you, you are one of them people who cares more about animals thatn human lives. We have mined for many decades and I have lived through it and I am not "poisoned". I am a healthy human being. And by the way it is my husband that is a miner I do actually have a job at the local hospital, you tree-hugging thugs....

[SuperCurdog]

We are peaceful- we are not slapping and threatening people- you are- you are the thugs.

If you don't understand clean air and clean water then I would hate to go to that hospital that you work at. It doesn't sound like you are healthy, it sounds like you are suffering from low IQ from Mercury poisoning and the fact that you can't tell violent behavior form nonviolent behavior.

[jndmdd]

You people are ignorant, grandmother or not these people are threatening the the lively hood of these GREAT COAL MINERS and there families, you get what you ask for. If you don't like it leave us the HELL the alone and go back to the city and hug some DAMN trees.......

[tpaigeme]

I would say most environmentalists just want to change the way coal is mined. To actually HIRE MORE PEOPLE to do a better job of reclamation, build and operate toxic waste processors, deep mine more coal etc, and to create a whole new WORK FORCE of "eco-miners", "enviro-miners". Look to the future...look to the past. Talk to a union rep and see if Massey is to be trusted.

[fuckyamountains]

The union is on the side of the EPA, they aren't there for jobs!!! They left the UMWA Strip miners hanging, and that is Bullshit! And the UMWA is the ones that can't be trusted! Like you said, look at the past... The union isn't for the working man anymore, that's why there aren't many "union" jobs around anymore!

[tpaigeme]

A masterful PR job by the coal industry has convinced former adversaries that they are 'friends' of those they traditonally have sought to oppress. Only with bloodshed and death were the rights of miners recognized and then begrudgingly. Remember Buffalo Creek? Environmentalists are not the enemy of miners.

[SuperCurdog]

douginct-- this behavior is NOT acceptable- not acceptable. These same cowards get paid to blast and poison people---they know what they are doing- they like to be misled and be able to blame it on some one else- too bad - they are doing the crime of pinning in an 80 year old woman- no excuse

[WAKeele]

I hate this corporate bullshit!

Sometimes I wonder why I still fight for this country when intelligence seems to be an unliked minority...

[douginct]

While I'd say these people are acting like cowards, I can understand, when you are purposely misled, that they feel they are fighting for their lives, and cannot understand why the people they pinned to the wall are advocating clean energy. It's ignorance, but it's understandable. And when Massy coal continues to stir them up (playing right into his hands), what do you expect.

[FreedomJunkie420]

This is sickening!! Look at these "good ole boys & girls"! This is a Grandmother that they are threatening.

[SuperCurdog]

maybe the coal thugs wives should get a job- that is really what this is about-- they don't want to work

[SuperCurdog]

America-- take a look at the Coal Thugs - the terrorists of America. The thugs prevented us form using our 1st Amendment rights. These coal thugs should have been loaded up in a paddy wagon and taken to Russia.

These coal thugs not only blast and poison us in their jobs for the terrorist coal companies - they keep Americans from using their 1st amendment rights. These coal mining thugs are the "Queens of denial". Greedy pigs.

[jndmdd]

Coal thugs, do you have Damn job?????? These people are pissed off including me because you retards come in here and tell us what is good for us. You have not idea, leave us alone and take care of yourself, this is how we feed our children and make a living, it is not hurting any of you people. I believe these people are going to have a fight that they can't handle when they try to take our income away from our families...

[SuperCurdog]

Yes i have a job and I am local- 7 generations here- again you coal thugs show your violence. Yes you are hurting people- blasting our homes, flooding us out and poisoning air and water- shame on you. You poison your own kids. I believe as you become more violent you will end up in prison. This ain't the wild west and your comments are being sent straight to the police. America is watching and you make all coal miners look bad.

[jndmdd]

Do you think that I care that you are "supposedly sending my comments to the police" who gives a shit. No not shame on me shame on you for wanting to put people out out of jobs, we are not hurting you. These streams that you talk about are dry for 364 days out of the year and the one day taht it rains hard, the stupid epa has to throw there 2 cents into it. I am going to FIGHT LIKE HELL no matter what to keep our coal miners in a job NO MATTER WHAT. You can send it to the pres for all I care...

[alexcaulfield]

Yes, you have been tricked into being part of organized thugary. Do you realize that preventing people from attending a publicly federal hearing by intimidating and threatening them is a federal crime? Do you not understand that what happened at this hearing is a subversion of Democracy? Do you not understand that The People's most basic right of free speech was violated? Your arrogance and thug tactics are going to be your demise.

[fuckyamountains]

The room was full dumbass! No more people could go inside!

[karendeadpeople]

for fukyamountains-should we boost up the tobacco industry just to keep jobs? give up the MTR and pressure your reps. to bring in other industry. or if you don't like the mountains, leave.

[vrattler]

This isn't about jobs or something someone completely irrelevant to this conversation did. It's about this group of coal thugs again threatening the lives of peaceful people who were attempting to attend a federal hearing and give comments. No justification for this kind of behavior. Is this what we can expect next election day?

[pennilesscripple]

it's not about that either

it's about the needs of the economic system being greater than the needs of the people, the land, and all of the many life forms who share the land with the people

and that dynamic is being acted out through these people--some are on the side of the people and the land, some are on the side of the perpetually growing machine that destroys people and land

as it has been for centuries in this abusive culture

see zzz33333's 'the message'

[speciesamused]

I hope someone gets this on the non biased news. I will share it all over. I wish these protesters the best in their journey for justice.

Just as iron rusts from disuse, even so does inaction spoil the intellect. - Leonardo Da Vinci, One love.

[Dittoblogger]

Hmmm. Looks pretty much a lot of people are pinned in. Acting rowdy? Why those bastards! How dare they act rowdy. Well, I guess it could be worse. They could have been violent leftists dropping bags of cement from overpasses onto busses, rocking buses full of schoolchildren and spraying chemicals on old people like they did at the RNC. Or how about the nut-job leftist that shot and killed a pro-life activist on the street in Michigan, or the SEUI thugs that beat a black conservative?

[PatchouliMoon]

neanderthals. shame.

[fuckyamountains]

Damn, you "environmentalists" sure are quick to call foul when the ball isn't in your hands! We aren't gonna sit bck and let you all spread your BS lies and such about the coal industry! Coal doesn't harm streams, WV's streams are the cleanest they have ever been! Children ARE NOT SICK because of coal! Children ARE NOT DYING because of coal!

[climatebrad]

sad -- MTR has eliminated more coal miner jobs than any regs could. Limits on MTR would bring back higher-labor sub-surface mining.

Oh yeah, and children wouldn't be poisoned as much either.

[fuckyamountains]

Children ARE NOT poisened! MTR hasn't eliminated any coal jobs, you have been tricked into believing this by Larry Gibson, Maria Gunnoe, and that group of anti-coal people. Would you like to go underground IF you could work on the surface doing the same thing??? I highly doubt it! Think about what your saying!!

BTW, what state are you from?

[CleanWaterMI]

They're right, let them work.

Coalfield workers deserve jobs that will last more than a few finite years, jobs that will not endanger their health, & jobs that protect children from sickness- coal slurry, ash & blasts. Coal is not the future. Clean energy is.

Fight for jobs that don't destroy the water, damage health or put children at risk.

The time is now - Stop putting lives at risk for energy.

Bring Clean Energy Jobs & safe employment to coalfields! The Workers deserve OPTIONS

[casifras]

Kudos to all who braved the scene to make comments in support of our mountains and communities.

@wildlifecurt please understand that alternatives to MTR already exist! Coal was mined in the USA for over a century before MTR and today only a fraction of our total coal extraction uses this method. Moreover, using less destructive mining methods would provide MORE coal industry jobs, not fewer!

[wildlifecurt]

Surface mines employ a lot of employees, When Catenary Coal shut down the Samples complex 300+ workers were displaced. Thats a lot of jobs I dont want to argue, I just want you to think outside the box and realize it is impossible to make everyone happy, produce energy, and not extract natural resources (thus change the environment). What do we do?

[wildlifecurt]

As for a fractionMTR/surface mining represents 42% of the coal extracted in WV. Thats a little bit more than a fraction of a percent JOBS!... Sure you might be able to employ more workers, but that just means you are putting more workers underground with the possibility of losing their life would you work underground casifras?

[wildlifecurt]

MTR is a process that allows companies to access ~100% of a coal seam no matter what the thickness of the seam. Im assuming that the alternatives you are thinking about are deep mining, wind power, and solar power.

[fuckyamountains]

Seams that can be effectively deep mined are STILL deep mined! Another upside of MTR over room and pillar is the safety... More rock over your head generally produces a better top, less rock over top of your head produces a more dangerous situation. This may sound crazy but it is true! Wind power is wayyyyyyy to expensive and WILL NOT provide the same amount of jobs that coal does!

[pennilesscripple]

curt have you considered the alternative that we don't *need* more and more and more energy?

individual consumption of energy is never more than 25%

the other 75% is for industry, industrial agriculture, and the military

so the energy is extracted (harm) and used to make products that no one needs that make them sick and deplete more resources (more harm)

there is a third alternative that you're not considering

your unexamined premise is that we need more and more energy

[wildlifecurt]

Deep mining is an alternative, but it is not as efficient, you will still have subsidence from cave-ins, you still open up deep portals into rock layers that have the potential to change water chemistry in surrounding wells, and you place workers under hundreds of thousands of pounds of rock.

[wildlifecurt]

Wind power is harmful to the wildlife that is so called displaced from MTR sites, it is unsightly to see rows of windmills, it cant produce the same amount of energy, and cant be used on every mountain cause the amount of wind needed isnt present everywhere. Solar power requires space to place panels and solar farms, trees must be cut down to place these farms, and again solar cant produce enough energy here in the east to keep up with the demands of energy hungry Americans

[JakeUpMa]

yes, a blown up mountaintop i can deal with, but a row of wind towers? that is extremely unsightly. oh and where exactly did you get your information?

[fuckyamountains]

It will not provide more jobs! Deep mining technology has allowed us to use fewer employees underground, usually around 11-14 per section per shift! Compared to 25-45 per shift on a small MTR site.

[wildlifecurt]

The few comments below make these cola supporters sound like thugs that are just out looking to hurt someone. Could it be possible that these people are looking out for their jobs and for their family's future? Why can't people focus on supporting alternatives to coal and MTR before they try to shut it down? If these "angry mob of coal supports" had a different way to support their families, I think this demonstration would have been different, but they don't. Thus, they fight for their future.

[fuckyamountains]

And we will continue to fight for our future! And the future/security of this great nation!

[alexcaulfield]

We need to demand a re-hearing. but this time with National Guard presence. Haul the thugs off to jail where they belong.

[skinnychef]

those guys are scarey-- time to open carry!

xoxox

skinnychef

[FluxRostrum]

it was hard to ignore this. I just wasn't up to covering it. Glad you did.

[skinnychef]

sickening.

[HORNHost]

This is getting scarier and scarier. These ignorant members of the Coal Mob are going to hurt someone. They WANT to hurt someone.

They have the manners of a buzzard, the intelligence of a slug and the morals of a hyena.

Thanks for posting this so Americans can see what a gang of mouth-breathing knuckle-walkers the "Friends of Coal" truly are.